Last week I treated you to photos of varroa mites....those pesty mites that invade honeybee hives and wreak havoc on the brood. I had an "extra" 15 minutes this afternoon, so I decided to just sit outside my backyard hive and watch the bee activity. There is alot of coming and going...beautiful flights both ways, some pollen baskets FULL. It is so relaxing just watching the bees...then I see 6- 8- maybe even 10 honeybees in the grass in FRONT of the hive, struggling to crawl around....as if the St. Augustine grass was some huge jungle or something. I thought....those must be the older foragers, leaving the hive to die. Upon closer inspection, I see the deformed wings that is a tell-tell symptom of varroa mite infestation.
What's a mother to do???
I'm in the process of deciding...treat or not to treat? It is a VERY strong hive...I would love to see it make it through to next season. I love my little honeybees, and it makes my heart hurt to see them struggling so...
The following photos are for educational purposes only....
The first is of a bee I found in the grass...notice the misshapen (almost nothing) wings. The next one is of bees I 'rescued' from the grass to photograph (then returned them to the grass from whence they came.)
So sad...I know none of them will make it...so very sad!!)
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| Two little stubs where the wings should be. |
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Same condition here. The top one offers more of a silhouette of the deformed wings.
so sad.....
- I'll let you know if///how I treat this hive.
- I have to check my other 3 hives this weekend: rain is forecasted.
- I can't figure how to get out of "caption" mode....so I'll jsut sign off from here:
- bye now, and remember to ALWAYS bee kind!!
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kb
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